Fort Pickens Campground

2^nd trip to Pensacola and Fort Pickens Campground. This may be my new favorite place on the gulf (that includes Grayton Beaxh and Topsail)

At the Fort Pickens Campground, the proximity to the beach and bay can’t be beat, and that’s the real selling point of this campground. Some sites actually back up to the bay with white sand and calm water. All sites are just a short walk across the road and boardwalk to the beach and the beautiful teal waters of the Gulf of Mexico. You basically get a beach front lodging for $ 25 a night.
That said, I can understand how this campground *could* be a really crappy experience because most sites are tiny and close together without any shade trees, there are no dedicated tent-​only sites, and the campground is packed full of RVing families of 6+. But fortunately for me, I have access to advanced satellite imaging technology (Google Earth) to help me choose the best campsites. We stayed one night in site C-​12 in our tent with our dog. And — not exaggerating — C-​12 is by far the best site in the campground. So if you go, RESERVE SITE C-​12 on
beforehand.
When we arrived the ranger said «You must have been here before, you picked the best site!» We’d never been before, but I was happy to hear that, and even happier that it turned out to be true. Site C-​12 is very large and has neighbors only to one side and across the road. There are trees on 2 sides. For tent campers, there is a PERFECT elevated place for your tent on the soft sand in between two live oaks that provide great shade and cross breezes. There were many nesting Osprey that we enjoyed watching from our site. For even more privacy, you could set your tent even farther back in the woods. The site has water and electricity, and is steps away from the bathroom. The bathroom isn’t super clean, but has everything you need. The bathrooms near the center of the campground are a little better than the ones on loop C. We were here on Memorial Day, and the campground was full, but noise wasn’t an issue. There is a camp store that’s open until at least 6 with firewood, ice, beach gear, snacks and other essentials.
I’d happily come back on the condition that I will only stay in site C-​12.
Did I mention site C-​12 is wonderful?

Beautiful beaches, decent campground. Sites are really close together and without really checking the place out you could be stuck right in the sun with no shade. That happened to me, they said it was partly shady. If you can’t tolerate noise this is not your place. Quiet time does not exist here @least on the weekends. If you have a rv you’re golden. Tent camping… ehhh maybe during the week when it’s not so busy and crazy.

I had heard so many great recommendations for this park and was quite disappointed when we arrived. We arrived on the tail end of a 14 day vacation out to Yellowstone/​Grand Canyon and had stayed at 9 previous campgrounds. We hoped this one would make us proud of our home state. Needless to say, the sites were the size of postage stamps, there was no ranger to enforce the quiet hours (and we had noisy neighbors on all sides) and the bathrooms were disgusting! The beach is beautiful and the front gate staff was very nice. We booked a 2 day stay and left after one night. I would like to try again someday in the hopes that they clean up their act.

Grew up here, many summer memories best camp ground and full of history as well as fun with out spending A city fortune.

Awesome campground but make sure if you’re a tent camper to get a site with good shade, there aren’t many since the hurricanes wiped a lot of trees out. Awesome camp store, great trails and beach/​bay access, had a wonderful 3 day trip and will definitely be making this an annual getaway!

Kurz nach der Einfahrt in den State Park ($ 8/​Fahrzeug) liegt auf der rechten Seite das Campground-​Office. Hier checked man ein und bekommt eine Einweisung in den weitläufigen Campground, der ca. 0,7 Meilen entfernt liegt.
Er teilt sich in zwei separate Bereiche auf: Loop A mit 43 Sites und die kombinierten Loops B — E mit weiteren ca. 150 Sites. Alle sind mit Wasser und Strom ausgestattet, es gibt zwei zentrale Dumpstationen. Alle Sites haben eine asphaltierten (paved) Untergrund, da man sich ansonsten auf dem sandigen Untergrund leicht festfahren würde.
Wir hatten eine Stellplatz auf Loop A, der den großen Vorteil hat, direkt am weitläufigen und breiten Strand mit seinem fast schneeweißen Sand zu liegen. Dafür sind die Sites für State Park Campground-​Verhältnisse recht eng beieinander. Auf den Loops B — E ist es genau anders herum, große Sites, weiter weg vom Strand.
Die Sanitäranlagen (Loop A) haben schon bessere Zeiten gesehen. Sie sind zwar sauber (tägliche Reinigung), aber deutlich abgenutzt, eine Renovierung täte gut.
Da im Umfeld viel stehendes Wasser und Swamps sind, begleiten einen in der Dämmerung Mücken als Dauergäste.
Fazit: Im Vergleich zu anderen Campgrounds in State Parks fällt dieser etwas ab. Die Strandlage allerdings ist einiges wert. Insgesamt drei solide Sterne.